Read about the settling of Oregon country and how westward expansion prompted Congress to make it a territory.

Article outlining the disputes and events in the 1840s leading to the acquisition of the Oregon Territory which included land west of the Continental Divide between northern California and the Province of British Columbia.

This site has a comprehensive list of well known Oregon pioneers. Click on a name to read the story of their early settlement and the experiences this held for them.

A biographic view of the life of Marie Dorion. As a young Native American woman, she led white men to the Oregon Territory. She was only 24 years old and was pregnant at the time. Her actions made her a symbol of bravery and endurance!

An interactive map that clearly shows the change in the status of slavery in territories from the Missouri Compromise to the Compromise of 1850. Click on the map to see the status before and after the Compromise of 1850.

See how James Polk's plan to claim the Oregon Territory, which had been shared with Great Britain since 1818, led him to victory with the slogan, Fifty-four forty or fight. Read about the settlers who traveled the Oregon Trail and why...

On this map you can see Alaska and Hawaii in relation to the contiguous United States and read brief text about their purchase/annexation, territorial status, and addition as states.

Click on the sliding bar and watch how the United States territory grew with the Louisiana Purchase, Florida Acquisitions, Texas Annexation, Oregon Country, and Mexican Cession.

Toggle back and forth on this interactive map to see how the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 completely negated the Missouri Compromise. Click on the map to see where slavery was permitted before 1854 and then after. Be sure to click on the...

This is a very simple map showing the Republic of Texas and the territory disputed with Mexico in 1836.

A map of the Oregon Territory between the time of exploration by George Vancouver (1792) and the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The map is color-coded to show the disputed claims of the British and United States, the Russian American line of...

A map of the Oregon Territory between the time of exploration by George Vancouver (1792) and the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The map is color-coded to show the disputed claims of the British and United States, the Russian American line of...

A map of the Oregon Territory showing the boundary on the 49th Parallel established by treaty between Great Britain and the United States in 1846, dividing what was once jointly held territory. The map also shows the boundary with Upper...

A map of the western United States between 1836 and 1850 showing the Texas controversy and territorial adjustments at the time. The map is color-coded to show the unorganized territory of the Louisiana Purchase and the boundary line with...

Here's a map to show you when states were added to the Union. It also shows territories and when they were acquired.

A brief look at the life of American explorer, Meriwether Lewis. Provides a historical map of the Oregon Territory, a portrait of Lewis, and a photograph from Little Belt Mountain.

A map of western North America between the opening of the Oregon Trail in 1832 to 1842, prior to the establishment of the Provisional Government of Oregon by American settlers in 1843. The map shows the boundary of the Oregon Country,...

A map of the Oregon Country showing the adjustments to the boundaries between 1818-1846, including the boundary established in 1818 to the east of the jointly controlled territory (Great Britain and the United States), the southern...

A map from 1911 of the United States showing the territorial acquisitions from the original states and territory established in 1783 to the Tripartite Convention of 1899 in which Germany and the United States divided the Samoan...

A map of the United States showing the growth of the nation from 1783-1867. The map is color-coded to show the thirteen original states, the territory acquired by conquest during the revolution and the Treaty of 1783, the Louisiana...

A map from 1904 of Oregon showing the capital of Salem, principal cities and towns, railroads, stage lines, mountains, rivers, and coastal features. "Oregon - Organized as a Territory in 1848; became a state in 1859. Area, 96,030 square...

A map from 1920 of the United States and its territories between 1783 and 1900 showing the nation's expansion and date of acquisition of each new territory or possession. The map is color-coded to show the progression from the original...

A map from 1898 of Oregon showing the capital of Salem, principal cities and towns, railroads, mountain systems, lakes, rivers, and coastal features. "Oregon, name derived from Spanish word signifying 'Wild Thyme,’ so called on account...

A map from 1885 of the United States showing the territorial growth from the original States and the Northwest Territory in 1783 to the Russian cession of Alaska in 1867. The map is color-coded to show the progression from the original...